Ronaldo in need of Portugal supporting cast to perform

Cristiano Ronaldo has ruled out any immediate thought of retirement from international football as he believes he still has plenty to give Portugal, he told a press conference on Monday.

"When the time comes, I'll move on. It won't be a difficult decision to make," the 39-year-old said ahead of Thursday's Nations League clash with Croatia in Lisbon.

"If I feel like I'm no longer contributing anything, I'll be the first to leave," he added, citing the example of his former team-mate Pepe, "who left through the front door" after announcing his retirement from the game last August at the age of 41.

The five-time Ballon d'Or winner, who has been playing for Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia for almost two years now, failed to score as he appeared at a record sixth European Championship this year, with Portugal exiting in the quarter-finals.

In spite of the criticism he received in the press Ronaldo said he "never considered leaving the national team" and he has retained the backing of coach Roberto Martinez.

"People's expectations of the national team were too high," said Ronaldo, adding that the bad times in a footballer's life "allow you to evolve".

After Thursday's meeting with Croatia, Portugal remain in Lisbon to face Scotland on Sunday.

Diego Maradona has requested a meeting with Argentina's players in an attempt to inspire the struggling squad ahead of their crucial final World Cup group game against Nigeria.

The two-time world champions must beat Nigeria in Saint Petersburg on Tuesday if they are to avoid a premature exit following a disastrous 3-0 defeat by Croatia.

He said he would bring along other Argentina greats of the past for the motivational talk.

"I would love to hold a meeting with them, with (Nery) Pumpido, with (Sergio) Goycochea, with (Claudio) Caniggia, with (Pedro) Troglio, even with (Daniel) Passarella if he wants to come, and with (Jorge) Valdano," Maradona told Venezuelan TV channel Telesur.

"We're going to defend our honour, boys. It cost us too much to be where we are for Croatia to come and hit us for three goals and to leave with our arms crossed without anyone putting a foot in."

Maradona, who has criticised coach Jorge Sampaoli and striker Sergio Aguero in recent days, also took aim at Argentina Football Association (AFA) president Claudio Tapia in his latest outburst.

"I'm furious and very upset inside, because anyone who wore that (Argentina) shirt can't see it being trampled like that by a Croatian team that isn't Germany, that isn't Brazil, that isn't Holland or Spain," he said.

"But there is a guilty party and the culprit is the president of the AFA. Everyone just accepted it when Sampaoli came in with computers, with drones, with 14 assistants.

"I think there is a total lack of authority on Tapia's part."

Javier Mascherano, one of the squad's senior players, denied on Sunday that there was a rift between Sampaoli and the players.

England captain Harry Kane plans to follow Cristiano Ronaldo's example by extending his career as long as possible.

Portugal striker Ronaldo scored the 900th goal of his remarkable career in a Nations League victory over Croatia on Thursday.

It was the 39-year-old's 213th appearance for his country and the achievement has provided Bayern Munich forward Kane with an incentive as he approaches the latter stages of his own career.

Kane endured a difficult Euro 2024 as Gareth Southgate's side were beaten 2-1 in the final by Spain after a spluttering campaign.

But the 31-year-old is keen to follow in the footsteps of former Manchester United and Real Madrid star Ronaldo as he prepares for England's Nations League opener against Ireland in Dublin on Saturday.

"Cristiano is the benchmark, not only being one of the best footballers ever to play, but also the benchmark of how long you can play for at a higher level," Kane told reporters on Friday.

"I think sometimes in football and maybe in sport in general, there's a perception that when you get to your thirties it's time to start slowing down, playing fewer games and not playing to the high level.

"Cristiano is just showing that every week, every time he plays, every time he scores, so from my point of view, that's the aim.

"I want to play as long as possible for England and it's great to see other athletes doing it in front of me. It shows that it's possible, and it's just about how you feel yourself.

"I feel in a really good place, both physically and mentally and whatever noise there is around, as long as you keep performing and keep doing what you know you can, that's all you can do."

Kane is in line to win his 99th cap against Ireland after another draining summer, with little time to rest after the Euros before returning to action.

While acknowledging the physical demands of ever-longer seasons, the former Tottenham striker said the increasing pressure is something players simply have to get used to.

"There was a lot of talk during the Euros about me and my condition, but like I said then, I felt in good shape," he said.

"Did the games go the way I wanted? No. Not really. But there were a lot of us who felt below par in terms of individual performances and we did extremely well to get to where we got to, which was down to our team spirit and cohesion we created over the years.

"But sometimes when it does not go the way you wanted it to go, there is always something to look for and someone to blame. But I feel good, I have come back in a good place and I have started the season well."

Cristiano Ronaldo was diagnosed on Sunday with a viral infection and will miss Al Nassr's Asian Champions League opener this week at Iraq's Al Shorta.

The Portuguese veteran is targeting Asia's top club crown to add to his long list of achievements when the competition kicks off on Monday.

"Al Nassr captain Cristiano Ronaldo was not feeling well today and was diagnosed with a viral infection," said a club statement posted on social media platform X on Sunday.

"The team's doctor confirmed he needs to rest and stay at home. As a result he will not be travelling with the team to Iraq today. We wish our captain a speedy recovery."

The former Real Madrid and Manchester United forward saw his first attempt with the Saudi side Al Nassr end in a quarter-final penalty shootout defeat to eventual champions Al Ain earlier this year.

Now rebranded as the Asian Champions League Elite, Al Nassr and the other teams from Saudi Arabia will be a major threat after spending vast sums of money in the last two years on the likes of Ronaldo and Neymar.

England forward Ivan Toney was the latest big name to swap Europe for Saudi when he left Brentford for Al Ahli last month for more than $45 million.

As part of the new-look competition, Saudi Arabia -- which is expected to host the 2034 World Cup -- will stage a mini knockout tournament from the quarter-finals onward to decide the champions, who will take home at least $12 million.

Al Nassr, Al Ahli and Neymar's Al Hilal will all be involved when the Champions League Elite launches on Monday with a new format that splits 24 teams evenly into two groups of East and West.

Each team will play eight different opponents in the group stage.

The top eight teams from each zone will play in the last 16 over two legs in March, before the action moves to the final stages in Saudi Arabia from April 25 to May 4.

- Injured Neymar missing -

Saudi champions Al Hilal are looking to win a record-extending fifth Asian title but they are still waiting for the return of Brazilian ace Neymar, who has been sidelined since suffering a serious knee injury last year.

Al Hilal have signed Portugal full-back Joao Cancelo from Manchester City, bolstering a squad that already featured Aleksandar Mitrovic, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and Ruben Neves.

Despite the absence of the 39-year-old Ronaldo for Monday's opening encounter in Bagdad, Al Hilal are still able to call on Sadio Mane, Aymeric Laporte and Marcelo Brozovic.

The defending champions, Al Ain, are from the United Arab Emirates and were coached by Argentina great Hernan Crespo to victory against Japan's Yokohama F-Marinos over two legs in May's final.

Al Ain are one of two UAE clubs taking part in this year's edition, with teams from Qatar, Iran, Uzbekistan and Iraq completing the West zone line-up.

In the East, clubs from Japan have posted the best results in recent years and Yokohama return to the Champions League to spearhead their challenge.

Coach Harry Kewell has been sacked since leading them to last season's final, with the former Liverpool and Leeds forward paying the price for his team's lacklustre domestic form.

Kawasaki Frontale and Vissel Kobe are also representing Japan, while three-time champions Pohang Steelers, twice winners Ulsan and debutants Gwangju will carry the flag for South Korea.

Chinese clubs' spending power has long since dried up, but former Chelsea attacker Oscar is still on the books of Shanghai Port, who are led by Australian coach Kevin Muscat.

Shandong Taishan and Shanghai Shenhua are also involved from China, while one club each from Australia, Thailand and Malaysia feature in the East league stage.

Brazil fans mocked Lionel Messi and celebrated Argentina’s defeat as they were singing `Messi Ciao’ (Goodbye Messi) in St. Petersburg on Thursday night. The Selecao fans parodied the famous Spanish song Bella Ciao (O darling goodbye).

The fans are always interested about how their rivals are doing in tournaments like Copa America and the World Cup.

Lionel Messi cut a lonely figure as Argentina fell to a demoralising 3-0 defeat at the hands of Croatia at which has left their qualification hopes hanging by a thread.

Both Brazil and Argentina drew their opening games at the 2018 World Cup. Brazilians however found something to celebrate as they mocked Argentina’s star player.